Review

by Rebecca Bundy, Mar 9th 2010

Arata: The Legend

GN 1

Synopsis:

Arata has found himself in a rather sticky situation: not only did his grandmother lie on his birth records about being a girl, making him the next in line to become the sacred princess, but when the princess' 12 Shinsho, guardians with the powers of the gods, try to murder her, the blame for the crime falls on Arata! He flees into the Kando Forest, and the magic there switches his soul with present-day Arata Hinohara, who has troubles of his own at school. Stuck in Arata's body, Hinohara must now find a way to keep from being executed for a crime he didn't commit, figure out how to wield the Goshintai, a battered Hayagami (god in the shape of a sword), and return to the body and world he left behind.

Review:

Synopsis:

Arata has found himself in a rather sticky situation: not only did his grandmother lie on his birth records about being a girl, making him the next in line to become the sacred princess, but when the princess' 12 Shinsho, guardians with the powers of the gods, try to murder her, the blame for the crime falls on Arata! He flees into the Kando Forest, and the magic there switches his soul with present-day Arata Hinohara, who has troubles of his own at school. Stuck in Arata's body, Hinohara must now find a way to keep from being executed for a crime he didn't commit, figure out how to wield the Goshintai, a battered Hayagami (god in the shape of a sword), and return to the body and world he left behind.

Review:

A modern-day boy suddenly finds himself whisked away to a fantasy world where certain individuals have been granted extraordinary powers by the gods… does this story sound a bit familiar to you? It may be hard to shake the feeling that Arata: The Legend is just Yuu Watase's way of trying to reinvent the wheel, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing so long as the wheel continues to turn. But does Arata actually pull off the magic that made Fushigi Yûgi such an interesting (albeit sometimes annoying) story?

The series starts out focusing on Arata, a young man in your standard ancient-but-magically-inclined world. Arata isn't a terribly complex character, and in fact seems more like a spirited girl than a guy, but when compared to some of the characters around him – his best girl friend who's about as interesting as a stuffed animal and his “energetic” grandmother (is it really that hard to make a grandmother character behave like a real, lively grandmother instead of a five-year-old boy?) – it's hard not to like him simply for how honest and caring he is. Plus, with this being the beginning of the series, there's still plenty of time for Arata to evolve and grow.

As the series progresses past the first chapter however, one quickly comes to the sad realization that this series isn't about Arata; it's about his counterpart, Arata Hinohara. For a brief few pages, readers are fooled into thinking that Arata H. may be something a little more “western” and unique: a character who's honest and willing to speak up for a stranger instead of blending into the crowd and pretending like nothing is going on around him. Instead, all of that personality magically vanishes in the face of bullying. Why is he being bullied by others at his new school? Because a student at his old school, who got extremely offended when Arata H. ran a bit slower in a practice run in order to encourage said student to keep trying, transferred to his new school and instantly turned everyone against him! Wait, what?

Yes, bullying is a prevalent theme in any series that involves school-aged kids, and sometimes that bullying takes on a strange, monstrous form that goes above and beyond vicious rumors and harmless pranks. But the bullying here isn't something that comes off as meaningful: it's a dull plot device that shoves Arata H. into a corner to force him down a particular path. What happened to the boy who decided to stick out in the crowd and chase down the pervert? It must've been a fluke, because there's no way that this self-destructive, willing victim would do anything to defend himself or stand out in a crowd.

Thankfully, time spent in the modern world is limited to one chapter, but with the loss of Arata in favor of Arata H., the return to the fantasy world is bittersweet. We learn that Arata H. is a Sho, destined to wield the power of a Hayagami, and that he must now deal with the fallout from the attack on the princess, learn how to wield his Hayagami, and come to terms with the world he's now stuck in. What's going on around Arata H. seems interesting, yet it's hard to care when he spends the vast majority of his time whining about how betrayed he feels. He needs to interact more with characters like Akachi, who gives Arata H. a good verbal smack to the back of his head during his trial (the only intense and gripping scene in the entire volume). Here too we see a bit of the “stand up and fight” side of Arata H., but it's hard to get your hopes up about a character that only switches to his admirable personality when that particular plot device is needed to keep Arata H. from being killed.

While the main character still has a lot of room to (hopefully) grow, the artwork is picture-perfect Watase, returning to her old-school roots of younger, more vibrant character designs in favor of the older, “slimmer” look that some of her series (like Sakura-Gari and Ceres) have been marred by. The hairstyles and costumes of the fantasy world characters are overly-elaborate, utilizing a strange mixture of Chinese garb and almost futuristic-looking armor, yet somehow the almost outright laughable outfits work. This is a testament to Yuu Watase's art: a lot of fantasy series try to pull off unique designs, yet very rarely do these series manage to do it without making their characters look like clowns.

Old Fushigi Yûgi fans will probably pick this volume up just to see if she has recaptured some of the old charm and dressed it up in a new-yet-familiar setting, but they'll be shocked to discover that Watase has managed to make a main character that is actually whiner and more pathetic than Miaka. It's hard though to write off Arata's interesting lore and a group of “evil” characters who will, no doubt, have emotional histories and stories to tell over the fact that the main character is completely unlikable and inconsistent. There's some great story potential, a handful of interesting secondary characters, and plenty of Watase's signature art style within these pages, but only time and future volumes will be able to tell if it's enough to outshine its one big flaw.

Grade:

Production Info:

Overall : B+

Story : B-

Art : A

+ Great art and character designs; plus, Watase's ability to create interesting lore is as sharp as ever.− Pathetic, cowardly main character makes everything involving him painful to read.

Gabriella delves into this dark fantasy film from the creators of the classic Night on the Galactic Railroad, while Paul breaks down all this week's new anime releases.― I've been watching Dagashi Kashi 2 this season, and it's been an interesting experience. I don't think I've ever seen such a character-focused comedy sideline its most recognizable protagonist for so many episodes in a row before. ...

Love Live Sunshine maintains the goofy appeal of its predecessor while simultaneously struggling to escape its shadow. Nick Creamer finds out how this next generation of idols stacks up to the original hit-makers.― How do you follow up a megahit? After the first season of Love Live turned into a sales juggernaut, Sunrise initially followed it with a second season that was essentially “Love Live, but...

Theatrical anime poster art isn't just unbelievably cool, it's also a part of history. Mike takes us on a tour of his personal collection that doubles as a fascinating exploration of the form.― Think of that moment when you realized that you weren't some dumb kid anymore; that revelation that you could no longer be truly carefree, but instead had to at least pretend to be a grown-up. I don't think i...

This uneven but often charming journey into first love and hot-blooded justice has finally arrived on blu-ray! Nick Creamer has the details on Imaishi's bite-sized creation.― Hiroyuki Imaishi's name is almost synonymous with the Studio Trigger brand. After providing dynamic key animation and highlights like FLCL's manga sequences early in his career, he became the flagship director for Gainax's last...

150+ photos of Osaka's biggest anime event― Spring is in the air in Osaka. The plum blossoms are at their peak in Osaka Castle Park, and the cherry blossoms should start blooming next week. And it's time again for Osaka's biggest anime event: the Nippombashi Street Festa. This year was the 14th festival, held in Den Den Town, Osaka's equivalent of the otaku paradise of Akihabara. For those unfamilia...

Many anime couples don't get even get the chance to confess their feelings, much less tie the knot, but at least these lovebirds managed to take the first step together. These are just seven of the best popped questions.― Hey guys! I missed you over the last two weeks. I was laid up recovering from a minor medical procedure, but it let me both catch up on this season, last season, and marathon 50-s...

As the first novel in this spinoff series to go beyond the anime adaptation, this is recommended reading for transitioning between the two versions. Theron Martin explores this new content.― With volume 5, the Sword Oratoria novel series mostly passes beyond the end of its anime adaptation, picking up as Loki Familia is returning to the surface from the climactic events of the anime's final episode;...

Andrew Partridge , founder of Europe's Anime Limited and the Scotland Loves Anime film festival drops by to share his history and insight into the world of European anime distribution.― ANNCast Episode 324 - Scotland Loves Anime Andrew Partridge, founder of Europe's Anime Limited and the Scotland Loves Anime film festival drops by to share his history and insight into the world of European anime di...

Violet Evergarden and The Ancient Magus' Bride make their bids for the top of the heap as the race grows closer in the final weeks of the Winter season. Find out where your favorites rank!― Our team of reviewers are following 28 anime series of the Winter 2018 season and readers are rating each episode as the reviews go up. So let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of t...

How long does it actually take for a production team to create a single episode of anime, end-to-end?― Mark asked: I have a pretty simple question. About how long prior to a show airing does animation production start? So not pre-production meetings or voice acting or anything like that, but the artists sitting down and drawing the whole dang thing. How much of a lead time do these artists need to ...

The magical world of this hit fantasy anime takes inspiration from a rich history of fairytales and folklore. Rebecca Silverman explores the stories behind the many wonders of Elias and Chise's adventures.― Kore Yamazaki is a dream of a mangaka. That's not just because she writes moving and fascinating stories that combine a slow, deliberate pace with likable and nuanced characters, but also because...

This sequel to the first action game in the franchise from KOEI-TECMO and Omega Force makes significant improvements on its predecessor, but is it worth a purchase? Heidi Kemps has the answers.― Omega Force's record with anime and manga adaptations is a bit spotty. We've had disappointments like Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage and Berserk and the Band of the Hawk, but we've also had some real win...

After months of buildup, this fantastical drama has finally delivered a breathtaking climax to Chise's long and difficult journey. We discuss our reactions to this game-changing turn of events.― After building us up for this moment over twenty-one emotional episodes, The Ancient Magus' Bride has finally delivered a breathtaking climax to Chise's long and difficult journey. This week in anime, Nick a...

It's a bursting pipe of Nintendo news, plus Dark Souls Amiibo, Broly arrives in Dragon Ball Fighterz, plus an interview with Viz Media's Eric Eberhardt on their indie games publishing initiative!― Sorry folks, no time for a witty intro sequence, we got a whole bucketful of news to get to from Nintendo Direct! Oh BABY. Let's start with the big stuff first: SMASH BROS IS HEADED TO SWITCH Well, what do...